Iron Lady, The Review

'The Iron Lady' is clearly made for a very niche audience. The kind that likes to see biopic of political personalities on the big screen. And also the ones who love to see the art behind it all instead of thinking much about the entertainment aspect of the affairs. This also means that though from performance point if view the film makes for a good watch, as a whole it turns out to be reasonably fair and not the kind that you definitely wish to step out of home and have a dekko in theatres.

As is a known fact, the film has already fetched it's leading lady Meryl Streep an Oscar quite recently. Now when it comes to emoting in front of the camera, Streep doesn't really require any introduction. Also, there is no surprise either when she eats up the screen time and again. However what has made her act in 'The Iron Lady' further special is the fact that she is enacting the part of none other than United Kingdom's first and only woman prime minister, Margaret Thatcher.

This means that while this is indeed a dream role for any actress, it is but natural that it is Streep who bagged the coveted part. However other than this very peg which catches attention of a discerning viewer, 'The Iron Lady' works but only in bits and parts. Yes, at times you are amazed by the proceedings on screen, especially the points where Streep gets into a commanding position as required for the scenes. However at other places the pace of 'The Iron Lady' just starts dipping, hence making one feel that this biopic could have been much better structured.

As is the case with biopic affairs though, this one too walks on a thin rope since a lot is required to be told in those limited minutes. This means that the story moves back and forth as one sees Thatcher's current times as well as the one when she had started nursing ambition to rule from the front. In between this all, there are numerous sequences that feature the political as well as personal life of Thatcher. However while some of these are exciting (her rise to power, tough decisions, interaction with party members), a few don't really make you warm up to the situations, especially when the conversations become way too wordy.

In fact at times one also feels a tad disconnected with the drama that ensues on screen since the grip, as evidenced in another film on the same lines - 'The Queen' [2006, Helen Mirren] is missing. Agreed that a biopic can't really be narrated at a bullet pace and that too in quick time. Still, how one wishes that second time director Phyllida Lloyd had maintained a much better stranglehold over the proceedings. Yes, the fact that she was branded as 'The Iron Lady' comes across well since it's convincing. Still by and large the film maintains a middle-of-the-road appeal instead of getting into an entertainment zone with an eye for commercials.

Due to these reasons, neither does the film end up becoming a classic saga nor does it prove to be an entertainer that ends up being a money-spinner. Eventually, it all boils down to only one individual - Meryl Streep and Meryl Streep alone - who keeps you reasonably interested in those 100 minutes affair.

Rating: **1/2